GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands, Sep 13, CMC – Local internet service provider C3 Pure Fibre says it intends to seek permission to appeal to the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in London after the Cayman Islands Court of Appeal ruled that licence fees historically charged by utilities regulator OfReg were lawful.
The Court of Appeal ruling on Thursday overturned an earlier Grand Court decision that had found C3, also known as 
Infinity Broadband Ltd, was not liable for certain royalty and regulatory fees.
C3 maintains that, until corrective legislation was passed in December 2024 and December 2025, Cayman’s statutory framework did not lawfully permit the charging and collection of the fees from the information and communications technology sector.
OfReg is seeking more than CI$500,000 in fees it says are owed by C3, which is partly owned by managing director Randy Merren.
C3 and other telecommunications companies, including Digicel and Flow, have challenged fees paid to the regulator amid a long-running dispute over the interpretation of the legislation.
C3 argues that the word “prescribed” in the relevant law required licence fees to be established through regulations and published in the official Gazette, rather than imposed through individual licence agreements.
The company said the case was of public importance to Cayman’s ICT sector and had broader implications for regulatory transparency and accountability.
“We welcome the Court of Appeal’s careful consideration of these important questions, but we respectfully disagree with its conclusion on how licence fees must be established under the ICT Act,” Merren said.
“We believe this is a point of real significance, not only for C3 but for the wider ICT sector and the consumers who rely on it, and we intend to ask the Privy Council to consider it.”
C3 began its legal challenge in 2023. The Grand Court later ruled in its favour, finding that the relevant fees had not been lawfully prescribed and opening the way for the company to seek repayment.
OfReg appealed, arguing that the charges were lawful, transparent and properly authorised through the licensing framework.
The Court of Appeal agreed with the regulator, finding that the legislation and published licence terms provided sufficient authority for the fees and noting that they had also been reflected in government budgets for years.
The judges also said C3 had waited too long to challenge the charges.
CMC/ci/kb/2026